San Francisco 49ers notebook: Frank Gore warms up to 'pistol' offense

SANTA CLARA -- Let's just say that it wasn't love at first sight when 49ers running back Frank Gore witnessed the so-called "pistol" formation.

"I felt that's not real football, at first," Gore said Thursday. "But it's helping us to get where we want to go, and win it all."

Indeed. Under second-year quarterback Colin Kaepernick's guidance, the 49ers (12-4-1) are riding the multi-optional formation, in part, into Atlanta for the NFC Championship game against the top-seeded Atlanta Falcons (14-3) at noon Sunday.

It was when he was in college at Miami that Gore first saw the "pistol" formation, an alignment that features Kaepernick a few steps back from center, not quite as far back as the shotgun formation.

"I come from Miami, it was like pro-style offense," Gore said. "I didn't think really big of it. But now, I love it."

Of course, part of why Gore adores the pistol formation is the fact Kaepernick runs the read-option from there, which forces the defense to pay particular attention to Kaepernick and can't key on Gore as much as usual.

Kaepernick rushed for 181 yards -- the most ever in an NFL game by a quarterback -- against the Green Bay Packers last Saturday night.

It's not a coincidence that Kaepernick's success opened up holes for Gore as the game progressed. Gore rushed for 119 yards, with 75 of those coming after halftime.

"Hopefully they keep looking out for him, then 21 (Gore's jersey number) keeps getting the ball, and I do what he did last week," Gore said.

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Former 49ers quarterback Trent Dilfer called Kaepernick's 44-yard pass to tight end Vernon Davis the most impressive pass of the divisional playoff games. Davis called it a much-needed confidence booster.

"It made me feel I'm unstoppable," Davis said.

Davis' long reception late in the third quarter against the Packers set up a 49ers scoring drive that culminated with Gore's touchdown that upped the lead to 38-24.

That served as Davis' lone reception of the game. Four other passes his way missed the mark. He now has only seven receptions the past seven games.

Even so, Davis remains upbeat and a team-first player, oftentimes pointing out how much satisfaction he gets from blocking and drawing attention away from other receivers.

"I've just got to take advantage of my opportunities," Davis said. "We're winning, and that's a great thing."

Falcons defensive end John Abraham played sparingly against the Seahawks because of a sprained ankle. Falcons cornerback Dunta Robinson said he expects the team's sack leader to be in better shape Sunday.

"Abe's fine and well," Robinson said. "He'll definitely be ready to go. ... You would probably have to cut his foot off for him to miss this game. In 13 years, this is as close as he's ever been. He's never played in an NFC Championship game. It would have to be some unbearable pain to keep him out of this game."

Abraham participated in 15 of the Falcons 67 defensive plays against the Seahawks. He led the Falcons with 10 sacks during the regular season, more than one-third of the team's total.